Over 2,000 people in the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta have received their first dose of a COVID-19 vaccine. Second doses of the vaccine began last week. So far no
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During a virtual town hall hosted by the Yukon-Kuskokwim Health Corporation on Jan. 10, President and CEO Dan Winkelman shared an ambitious hope.
“I hope as many people as possible get vaccinated in our region and throughout the nation and the world,” Winkelman said.
The virus that causes COVID-19 has had an outsized impact on the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta. Since last October, the region has had the highest case rate in Alaska, and one of the highest case rates in the nation. But even with the virus so widespread in the region, fewer people than expected are willing to get vaccinated.
“We have seen a fairly high declination rate throughout our region for the vaccine,” Winkelman said.
Following the winter holidays, Nome Public Schools (NPS) and the Bering Strait School District (BSSD) are returning to in-person instruction which began Monday, January 11th, while the Lower Yukon School District (LYSD) will proceed with a distance-learning model.
NPS announced last Thursday via a social media post that they will be returning to in-person learning with “all COVID-19 mitigation procedures still in effect.”
Ahead of the announcement, during a Nome School Board meeting in early December, NPS Superintendent Jamie Burgess spoke about the conditions required to return to in-person instruction.
“So, if everything works exceptionally well, we’ll be welcoming students back in on January 11th. January 4th was always planned to be a distance-learning week because we will have a significant number of staff and families traveling over the winter break. We want to make sure that everybody has the opportunity to observe quarantine and that we actually have enough staff
Katie Basile / KYUK
At times it felt like 2020 would never end, but now the year is finally coming to a close. Before we move into 2021, here’s a look back on KYUK’s top stories from the year we’ve just survived.
Bethel began the year with a unique distinction. It became one of the few places in the nation where you can buy marijuana, but not liquor. Bethel’s only liquor store closed following a vote to enter a more restrictive local option status. Shortly after, Bethel’s first two marijuana stores opened.
Bethel musher Pete Kaiser won the Kuskokwim 300 Sled Dog Race for the fifth time in six years.
Credit Katie Basile / KYUK
The Yukon-Kuskokwim Health Corporation has been reporting lower numbers of new COVID-19 cases recently. Over the past two weeks, an average of 23 new cases have been reported per day.
At its peak, the Y-K Delta was discovering 66 new cases per day in a two-week span between Nov. 22 and Dec. 4. The number of new cases is declining in other places around the state as well. Anchorage announced that it will relax some of its COVID-19 restrictions on Jan. 1 because the city’s case rates dropped by 50% in December.
Even with the decline in cases and the arrival of vaccines, the pandemic is far from over. Nationally, Dr. Anthony Fauci has said that there may be a surge in new cases after the holidays. State of Alaska Chief Medical Officer Dr. Anne Zink said that she is worried about what January and February will look like.